More on Hudson's 1936 to 1947 Basic Body Evolution

Nowadays, a car body can remain in production for many years -- decades, even.  For example, the Chrysler 300 sedan was offered model years 2005-2023.  And the Volkswagen Beetle's postwar production run was 1946-2003.  But American carmakers from the 1930s into the 1960s tended to keep a basic design in production for two to four model years.

An exception was Hudson.  A new design was launched for 1936 and that body remained in production through the 1947 model year.  Due to World War 2, there were no 1943-45 models, but that body was retained for a net nine model years.  I posted about that here.

The present post is a footnote to the previous one.  It displays side views of Hudson sedans revealing the retention of the expensive-to-modify passenger compartment, while other parts were cleverly facelifted over the years.  Side views of Hudsons were sometimes hard to find.  Also, Hudson had a variety of models over those years that had different wheelbases.  Some models had wheelbase variations from year to year.  So to help gauge effects of facelifts and model differences, I'm supplying wheelbase data in the captions below.

Gallery

1936 Hudson Custom Eight - car-for-sale photo
The new design.  Its wheelbase is 120 inches (3048 mm).  The previous design also had large, tall windows.  That might have been fine for passengers, but impeded stylists from creating sleek appearance.  In contrast, the windshield is short.

1937 Hudson Custom Six Touring Sedan - Daniel Schmitt photo
The wheelbase is 122 inches (3099 mm).  This photo was taken using a somewhat wide-angle lens (note distortion of tires), so the car looks a bit longer than it should.  I couldn't find another suitable side view.  Manufacturer's model names did not consistently follow this, but a "town sedan" in those days had a small, internal trunk, whereas a "touring sedan" featured an "attached" trunk visible at the rear.  Note that the front door is hinged on the A-pillar, unlike in 1936.

1938 Hudson Terraplane - Wikimedia Commons photo
This model's wheelbase was 117 inches (2972 mm), the shortest shown here.  Most of the 1938 facelifting had to do with the grille and front end.

1939 Hudson Country Club Eight Touring Sedan - Worldwide Auctioneers photo
Another 122 inch wheelbase.  This was Hudson's most expensive model.  Some were built on a longer wheelbase.  Again, the front was facelifted.  Fender design is also changed, along with the aft end (wider "D-pillar" zone).

1940 Hudson Super Six - car-for-sale photo
Its wheelbase is 118 inches (2997 mm).  Town sedan style aft end.  Another front end facelift, including the forward part of the front fenders.  Compare the hood to, say, the 1937 version.

1941 Hudson Commodore Eight - car-for-sale photo
Wheelbase is 121 inches (3073 mm), and is the same for the cars shown below.  Visible here are reshaped fenders and a revised rear quarter window profile.  More important, the trunk has been blended to the body as a bustle-back; that was an important step to make Hudsons look as contemporary as possible, given the 1936 body structure.  Due to the war, changes were minimal after this.

1942 Hudson Commodore Eight - car-for-sale photo
The after part of the front fender is reshaped, and the rear fender looks like that from 1940.  Doors are reshaped at the bottom to cover the running board (General Motors was doing this as early as the 1938 Cadillac Sixty Special).

1946 Hudson Super Eight - car-for-sale photo
Until around 1949, it was a "seller's market" in postwar America.  Absence of 1943-45 cars created strong demand for new cars, so prewar designs were continued by all carmakers for a while.  Hudsons for 1946 and 1947 were essentially the same as '42s aside from a new (in '46) grille design.  Postwar redesigned Hudsons appeared for 1948.